Chapter Two [Water]

Chapter 2

[Water] 

      “We are like such losers!” Ashley said as she swung her put-put golf back and then forward, giving the ball headway down the small hill.

            “Duh. How could you tell?” Brit said sarcastically leaning on her club casually from the sidelines. Mason cocked his head at Brit and gave her an exasperated look even though he is just as sarcastic as she is.

            “What?” Brit asked curiously even though we all knew the answer.

            “So a little birdie told me someone is leaving for Australia, as a birthday present from her Uncle, tomorrow.” Ashley said in her usual preppy voice while looking at Tracey knowingly yet at the same time trying to pretend like know one else had heard the news until she said it. Tracey ignored her and went on with her turn that had just come up.

            “Really? I had no idea. Who?” Brit said once again in her mocking, sarcastic, unforgettable tone to our circle of friends, but mainly pinpointing it to Ashley. Ashley tried to ignore her and continued, but it didn’t change the fact that she knew what Brit meant.

            “Are you planning on going scuba diving while you’re there? I know I always wanted to try it. It looks like so much fun!”

            “You have to go through all these classes and exercises to get a license before you can actually go scuba diving.” Eric said jumping into the conversation.

            “My uncle is taking me to a place right around the corner from his house that offers classes that you can take so you can get your license. He already has one of his own so he’s going to go scuba diving with me once mine gets mailed in. I’m really excited.” Tracey said angling her club so the ball would go in perfectly. She patted it gently and the ball went tumbling in through the dark tunnel of the 18^th. She didn’t get a hole-in-one, but a hole-in-two wasn’t far off.

            “Who won? Who won? Who won?” Ashley asked trying to look at the card while Eric was totaling it up.

            “Even though I was the one keeping score it still looks like once again Mason got first place, Tracey got second, Brit and I tied for third, and sorry, Ashley, but you got last place.” Eric said looking up at everyone after he finished reading the places.

            “See I told you guys I wasn’t cheating. Golf just happens to be my talent. I can’t help it if the rest of the world sucks when I don’t.” Mason said stating his opinion openly.

            “Wait. No. No. Looks like Mason’s bad skills in math are rubbing off on me. He didn’t get first; Tracey beat him by two points.” Eric said looking thoughtfully at the game card only to realize for the first time in world history somebody beat Mason at his own game.

            “Woohoo! Go Tracey!” Ashley screamed excitedly.

            “My skills in math aren’t that bad and there is no way Tracey could have beaten me.” Mason said shocked as he grabbed the card from Eric.

            “Fine. So maybe Tracey did beat me by two points this time. It still doesn’t change the fact that I’m the champion and have won more times than anyone else here.” Mason grumbled as he crumpled up the game card and tossed it in the upcoming trash can. Everyone piled into the big hunter green van that they called “The Mystery Machine”. It’s Mason’s but he drives all of them around in it. Tracey tagged along even though she had her own red convertible at home in the driveway.

            “You better practice some more, Mason; otherwise I might beat you by five points next time.” She said smiling at him playfully. She had fun teasing him when he’s gullible.

            “Ha! Ha! Yeah. You wish! The only time you could do that is in your dreams. No wait. You couldn’t even do it there!” He laughed and smiled at her so she would know he was just playing around.

Mason dropped Eric and Tracey off at her house. Eric was planning on giving her a special night to celebrate her upcoming 17^th birthday that she was going to be in Australia for. Eric sat in the living room flipping through one of her dad’s older Sport’s Illustrated magazines as she went into her bedroom to freshen up a bit before they left. She threw on her pink bubble gum halter-top and faded blue hip-hugger jeans, pulled her honey colored curls into a high ponytail, and touched up her make-up.

“It’s amazing what a girl can do with a few extra minutes.” She whispered in the mirror before she walked out to find Eric sitting on the couch with a small package wrapped in pink and silver wrapping paper in the middle of his lap with his hands clenched around it.

“You look beautiful- as always. Happy early 17^th Birthday!” He said standing up and handing Tracey the small wrapped box. She took it and tore the wrapping paper off. It was a black velvet box and inside was a sparkling silver chain with a mother of pearl heart locket hanging from it so perfectly. She could barely contain her excitement.

“Wow! I can’t believe you got this for me it’s so beautiful. Would you mind putting it on for me?” He took it from her hands and swung it around her neck, he fumbled a little before both ends were locked together and the clasp was tightly closed. He stood there in front of her with his arms still around her neck but he had let go of the chain and a second later was kissing her passionately. It felt like butterflies were fluttering out of her stomach, but still leaving her with a sweet embrace.

Tracey started to drift and wander through what felt like a different world, but in a sense wasn’t. She could see what she thought was the sun above her, but was more like what a sun would look like reflecting on water or beneath it. Water filled into her lungs as she opened up her mouth to breathe. She was underwater and drowning. She tried to scramble to the surface, but it was too far above her and there wasn’t enough time. Everything went black and she floated down to the sandy bottom of the sea.

“Tracey? Are you ok?” The voice sounded far away, but familiar. She was still unconscious, but could feel strong, firm hands slide around her and drag her toward the brightest part in the darkness, which she assumed to be the sun. She could feel the water becoming warmer as they rose. All of a sudden the air rushed into her lungs and her eyes fluttered open to see Eric staring down at her his eyes full of concern.

“What happened?” She asked confused and terrified that it might happen again.

“I think you passed out. All of a sudden you fell limp in my arms and you couldn’t hold yourself up anymore. You were about to fall, but I caught you just in time and laid you down on the couch.  Are you all right?”

“I think so.” She said touching her head lightly. Was the whole “trapped underwater” thing a phase that someone goes through when they pass out? It felt pretty real to her. She didn’t know how it could have been real, because there’s no logical way to explain it. She felt normal now and could remember everything that happened before she passed out.

“By the way I forgot to say thanks for my present.” She said sitting up and smiling at him.

“In some ways you didn’t, but you’re welcome. Are you still up for dinner and a moonlit walk on the beach?” He asked returning the smile.

“Are you kidding? I’m up for anything you can dish out.” She said jumping off of the couch and heading for the door. “Are you coming or what?”

“Don’t worry I’m right behind you.” Eric said closing the door and chasing after her to the car. She forgot about how helpless she felt when she had passed out and thought about the strong and firm hands that brought her back to the surface. They didn’t feel like Eric’s, but who else’s could they be? She soon forgot about it as they headed into the sunset.

Reviews

[Sharkapillar]

Up until this chapter I had no idea what the heck I was reading, where it was headed, or what genre it was even. Now i say, holy cow, this is creative. Though I was confused, because the first chapter is from Tracey's point of view, and now it's narrative from here on out. Otherwise, it's great!